Business and Other Briefings

CBI: The CBI has responded to a report by Nesta on peer-to-peer lending to business: Banking on each other.
Press release & links
 
CIPDChartered Institute of Personnel & Development research reveals a gulf in expectations between young people & employers that is contributing to high levels of youth unemployment. 

There is a clear mismatch between employers’ expectations of young people during the recruitment process and young people’s understanding of what is expected of them.
 
This is hindering young people’s access to the labour market, contributing to the high rates of youth unemployment (currently almost one in five 16-24 years old is unemployed) and fuelling a ticking time bomb of skills shortages for UK businesses, who may be unwittingly limiting their access to this important & diverse pool of talent.
Press release & links
 
CIPDSome of the most popular learning and development (L&D) interventions used in the workplace could actually be thwarting innovation.  That’s according to the final report in a series of Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development research insights on HR and its role in innovation.
 
The report (The innovation imperative) demonstrates how innovation comes in all shapes & sizes but, regardless of a company’s approach to innovation, collaborative forms of learning & systematic approaches to knowledge sharing are the keys to success.
Press release & links
 
WAG: The Welsh Government is cutting the costs of short term Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs) to make them more accessible & cost effective for SMEs. KTP, a UK-wide programme delivered by the Technology Strategy Board and supported by the Welsh Government, links companies with further and higher education institutions.
 
Recently qualified graduates, who are supported by academic supervisors, are placed with companies to work on specific business projects. The aim is to help businesses improve their competitiveness, productivity and performance through better use of knowledge, technology & skills
Press release & links
 
ScotGov: Scottish business is backing a new employer assessed work-based qualification to ‘help young people prove they are ready for employment’. The Certificate of Work Readiness has been developed in partnership with the business community and aims to give unemployed young people the chance to demonstrate the value they bring to the workplace.
 
Piloted by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) in a number of areas, the certificate will consist of college-based learning time, as well as 190 hours of real life work experience, and is unique in that it will only be awarded following employer assessment.
Press release & links
 
HMRC: Over 1m employer PAYE schemes have started to report PAYE in real time since it was launched last month, HMRC announced last week. The new PAYE reporting system, known as Real Time Information (RTI), started on 6 April 2013. Under RTI, employers report PAYE in real time from their first pay day on or after 6 April each time they pay their employees, rather than yearly.
Press release & links
Spotlight on women at Serco – Anita’s story